Resilient Campus Plan - UP Clark Green City

Plans of a new University of the Philippines (UP) campus in Clark Green City was announced in 2015. Thru agreement of UP and the Bases Conversion and Development Authority (BCDA), the project aims to establish a global campus to sustain academic needs and provide improved facilities for the UP community. As part of the agreement, the new UP campus will be built on 70 hectares of land within the 9450-hectare Clark Green City. The project embodies UP’s vision of social transformation through education since it targets to create an advanced academic and research campus (Rappler 2015, Manila Times 2015).

Clark Green City is said to be the “first smart, green and disaster-resilient city in the Philippines”. It is located strategically 120 kilometers away from Manila via North Luzon expressway, a mere 20 kilometers away from the Clark International Airport, and 90 kilometers from Subic Seaport. The location was chosen primarily because no fault lines are under or within its vicinity hence it is relatively safe from ground rupture. Also, its lowest elevation is 56 meters above sea level, so the location will not be prone to flooding. The central area will also work as a flood catchment basin. It will also have better protection from super typhoons from both sides – the Sierra Madre to the west and the Zambales mountain range to the east (Sunstar 2017).

For more protection from disasters such as earthquake and flooding, BCDA targets to install and underground utility corridor to house major utility lines. Also, remote management of various city operations will also keep the city connected to the rest of the world.